This invention relates to new and useful improvements in tools for manually dismantling pallets.
Wooden pallets are extensively used for stacking products to be transported or stored. These pallets use spacers, such as longitudinal stringers or longitudinally spaced blocks secured by nails to top and bottom deck boards, for spacing and connecting the deck boards to the stringers or blocks. Spacing of the deck boards allows access into the pallet by the forks of a lift truck. Power devices have been used that efficiently dismantle pallets in order that they can be repaired, compacted for discarding them, or the lumber reused. A power device for dismantling pallets is shown in applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 5,211,094. Some pallet handlers manually dismantle the pallets, however, and various tools have been used for this purpose. In some cases the deck boards are merely pried off by crowbars, etc. In most cases of manual dismantling, breaking and splintering of the deck boards occurs which means that the deck boards cannot be reused.